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3 Sheets-Sheet 1. E. HOWARD.

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(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 3. E. HOWARD.

TYPE WRITING MACHINE. No. 346,104. Patented July 27, 1886.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EBENEZER HOWARD, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

TYPE-WRITING MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 346,104, dated July27,1886,

Application filed July 24, 1885. Serial No. 172,503.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, EBENEZER HOWARD, a residentof London, England, haveinvented an Improved Type-\Vriting Machine, of which the following is afull, clear, and exact description, reference being made to theaccompanying drawings.

The object of this invention is the further improvement of type-writingmachines with reference to variable spacing. In a former applicationfiled by me on the 8th day of October, 1884, Serial No. 144,979, I havedescribed means whereby an extra movement was imparted to the carriagewhen the upper-case key was depressed. According to that invention theextra movement imparted was invariably the same. Thus, if small 11caused two teeth and capital N caused three teeth of the rack to pass,then if small m caused three teeth capital M caused four teeth to pass.I now provide mechanism whereby when the upper-case key is de pressed itdoes not necessarily occasion an increased movement of one tooth, andone tooth only, but may occasion in relation to one finger-key anincreased movement of two or more teeth, and yet may occasion inrelation to other fingerkeys a decreased movement of one or more teeth;or, further, the movement may be the same in the upper and lower case.In other words, the width of the letter in the upper case is notnecessa; rily dependent upon the width of the lowercase letter. Thisarrangement possesses the great advantage of making it possible to usethe existing key-board of the Remington or any other machine withoutchange, (which would be inconvenient.) It enables such characters assmall 1 and capital L to be printed with'one and three teeth,respectively, instead of, as before, one and two, respectively, whichwas not in accordance with their proper width, and it permits of thewider compound characters, such as the, being in the lower case, whichassists greatly in rapidity of work.

The second improvement consists in cans ing the carriage to move one ormore teeth on the depression of any of the finger-keys, afurthermovement, where required, taking place on the release of such key. Wherea long movement is necessary, as in the case of compound (N0 model.)

characters, this is very useful, as preventing the sudden jerk andstrain which would otherwise take place, besides insuring with morecertainty that the movement of the carriage shall have been completedbefore another character is printed.

A third improvement provides for an additional key, which, whendepressed, causes an extra space between every two letters, which isvery useful where display is required. Such additional key may be helddown, if desired, by any suitable catch.

The first'named improvement is effected in the following manner: Iprovide, as in my prior specification, (to which I pray reference,) aseries of movable fingers, which serve to modify the play of the pivoteddog, and these fingers are, as therein described,brought into action bythe movement of cross-bars placed underneath the key-levers, which barsare, as therein described, acted upon by protuberances upon thekey-levers.

The improvement now about to be described will be rendered plain byreference to the drawings.

Figure 1 is a bottom view of the back part of a Remington type-writerwith my improvements. Fig. 2 is a side view of the uppercase andspace-bar keys with their connections. Fig. 3 is the same with theuppercase key depressed. Fig. 4 is a side view of the dogs and fingers,showing how the fingers are connected with the rods. Fig. 5 is a backview, partly in section, showing the dogs with the fingers for adjustingtheir distances from each other.

In Fig. 1, M N O are crossbars, similar to those described in my priorspecification,whieh are pivotally connected by their arms a to arod, Q. This rod Q is capable of sliding in a slot, R, Figs. 1, 2, and3, cut in the frame Jof the machine, and as it slides it carries with itthe series of cross-bars, so that they occupy the positions shown by thedotted lines in Fig. 3. (See also Figs. 2 and 3.) This motion isimparted to the rod Q whenever the uppercase key S is depressed. WVhensuch key S is depressed, a correspondingkey-lever, S, is (as inRemington No. 2 machine, where it is called lowercase) raised; and Iconnect with these key'levers S and S two elbow-levers, T and T,respectively, which are pivoted to the rod U, which is fixed rigidly'inthe frame of the machine. These elbow-levers T and T, whenever theuppercase key is depressed, move the rod Q into the position shown indotted lines in Fig. 1 and by full lines in Fig. 3; and the said rod Q,when so moved, carries with it the series of cross-bars MN 0 into thepositions shown in dotted lines in Fig. l and by full lines in Fig. 3.When the upper-case key is released, the springs V slide the cross-barsback into their normal position. It will now be seen that any of thekey-levers F (of which keys only six are drawn, including the twospace-bar levers X and X, but of which there may be any number) may bemade witha protuberance to act upon either of the cross-bars when suchcrossbars are in their normal position, and with another protuberance toact upon any of the cross-bars in the positions shown in the dottedlines in Fig. 1. Thus the key-lever F may be made with a protuberance,P, over cross-bar M, and with another protuberance in such position thatit will be over cross-bar N when that bar is in the position shown indotted lines. Another key, F, may have a protuberance, P, over cross-barO in its normal position, and over cross-bar M in the position shown indot-ted lines; or, on the other hand, akey,F may have no protuberanceover either of the crossbars when they are in their normal position, andyet when cross bar M is in the position shown by dotted lines it may beacted upon by the protuberance P. In other words, with three rods anyone of four movements may be imparted to the carriage in the upper case,and also in the lower case, the degree of movement inthe upper and inthe lower case being quite independent. Ledges WV are placed on theextremities of the crossbars on either side of the machine, to preventthe cross-bars being drawn upward by the springs I, Fig. 4, when suchbars are slid off the protuberances.

Figs. 2 and 3 are side views of the uppercase lever S. Fig. 2 ShOVlS thecross-bars in their normal position, and Fig. 3 shows them in theposition they assume when the upper case key is depressed. It will beseen that the space-bar lever X is made with a single wide protuberanceplaced over cross-bar N. It therefore acts upon that cross-bar in bothpositions.

I11 order to prevent any movement of the fingers G H K, hereinafterreferred to, when the lateral movement of the cross-bars takes place,consequent on the upper-case key being depressed, I connect thecross-bars to such fingers in the manner shown in Figs. 1, 4, and 5.Underneath and attached firmly to each cross-bar is a stud, whichreceives a pin, 2. The pin .2 is furnished at one extremity with an eye,through which the connecting-chain m, with the finger, passes, and asuitable screwnut, 10, serves to adjust the height of the finger. Itwill be seen that if the rod M is moved into the position shown by thedotted lines,

Fig. 4, the connecting-chain will occupy the position shown by thedotted lines at the left of that figure, and the result will be that nomovement of the finger G there shown takes place, for the chain in thetwo positions forms, as it were, the two equalv sides of an isoscelestriangle.

For the purpose of the before-described improvement the dogs areprecisely of the same character as those referred to in my formerapplication but to attain the second object above stated-namely, that ofcausing a movement of the carriage on the depression of a key, andbefore its release-I make the following change: The back dog, B, whichbefore was rigid on its elbow, is now pivoted into the elbow-lever D bythe pin 0. Fig. 5. A spring, E, bears against the dog B; but the limitof separation from the stop d is felt by the foot f in its contact withthe movable stop L. The dog 0, with its spring and its foot f, remainsas in my former specification. At the period of rest the rack is held inthe usual manner by the dog 0, which is provided with the ordinary fixedstop, (I, which serves as a stop for both the dogs B and G. On thedepression of any key the dogs B and O are, in the usual manner,oscillated across the rack; but the dog B is not (as hitherto) inalignment with the dog 0, but enters the rack, say one tooth fartherforward of the dog 0, as in Fig. 5. The dog B enters the rack before dog0 leaves the same; but when, in the course of the oscillation, thislatter motion takes place the dog B is at once drawn over by the mainspring against the stop (1. The dog 0 is of precisely the same characteras described in my prior specification, and one or other of the fingers,of which three are shown in the drawings, are in a similar manner drawnup to regulate the play of such dog C.

In the drawings the finger K has two faces, and when no bar is depressedthe thinner face is held normally in the position shown in Fig. 5, andcauses a movement of three teeth, making, with the movement which hasalready taken place, four teeth. When finger G is drawn up, the lateralplay of the dog 0 is prevented, and thus only one tooth is allowed topass in the complete to-and-fro motion of the dogs. When the finger H israised, the dog O lets fall one tooth, and when the finger K is drawn upand presents its thicker surface to contact with the foot f dog 0 lotsfall two teeth.

The third improvement, that of causing, when required, an extra movementbetween every two letters, is effected by attaching an additional key,F, similar to the ordinary keys, to an elbow-lever, s, which connects byrods t with the movable finger L. When such key is depressed, the fingerL is slid along on its pivot the desired distance, and on the release ofsuch key a spring, p, returns the finger to its normal position. 7

It will now be obvious that this last-named improvement, instead ofbeing superimposed IIO upon the first-named improvement, may besubstituted for it. In other Words, the hori- Zontal bars may be, as inmy prior specification, pivoted to rigid pivots, and the elbowlever 8may be connected with the uppercase key, causing one extra tooth toescape in the case of all capital letters. So used it affords analternative method to that described in such prior specification. Itwill also be seen that the two last-named improvements may be usedseparately instead of conjointly. Thus, the finger or stop L may berigid, and in such position as to cause a movement of, say, one tooth onthe depression of a finger-key; or, on the other hand, the finger L maybe so placed that only when it is slid on its pivot shall it have thiseffect. It will also be seen that the cross-bars may be connected Withtwo keys. For example, an up per-case key and a key for figures,punctuation-marks, 820., and the two keys may be provided withelbow-levers, similar to T and T, in such manner that on the depressionof, say, the figures key the crossbars shall be carried a greaterdistance than Wheat-he uppercase key is depressed, and the fingerkeysmay be made with additional protuberances to regulate the verticalmovements of the cross-bars.

I claim 1. Aseries of finger-keys, F, having sets of protuberances P anda series of crossbars, M N O, placed thereunder and constructed,substantially as described, to be capable of moving in a horizontalplane on the depres sion ofa special key or keys from under one set ofprotuberances into position under another set, in combination with thevariable spacing mechanism and connections, substantially as described,between the latter and the cross-bars, so that each finger-key mayactuate the variable spacing mechanism so as to cause, if required, twoor more different degrees of movement.

2. In a type-writing machine, the combination of a rack, A, and pivoteddog 0 with a dog, B, which is also pivoted and provided with a spring,causing it to move in a direction opposite to the motion of thecarriage, a prolongation, f, and sliding stop L, for arresting themotion of the dog B and causing it to let fall one or more teeth on thedepression of the finger-keys and before their release.

3. In a type-writing machine, the combination of a rack, A, and pivoteddog 0 with the dog B, which is also pivoted and provided with a spring,causing it to move in a direction opposite to the motion of thecarriage, aprolongation, f, and a sliding stop, L, connected by parts ts to any special key, substantially as described, so that when suchspecial key is depressed the stop L is slid on its pivot and then on thedepression, and before the release of any of the ordinary fingerkeys thedog B lets fall one or more teeth.

EBENEZER HOWARD.

Clerks t0 ilIessrs. West, King, Adams & 00,

Solicitors, 66 Cannon Street, London.

